


Trouble Every Day

by Ringshadow



Series: Dynamic Factors [13]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: M/M, Phil has fantastic luck, circles and lines and circles, not always good but somehow fantastic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-02
Updated: 2015-11-02
Packaged: 2018-04-29 14:12:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,909
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5130584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ringshadow/pseuds/Ringshadow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Phil manages to get briefly kidnapped while looking into a SHIELD base upstate, and then has to talk about the effects of the serum.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Trouble Every Day

Phil woke up slow and syrupy, mouth feelingly like cotton and arms trapped. He stayed still, fighting the urge to pass back out, and assessed, managing to stay calm when he realized he was not only blindfolded, but was wearing headphones.  
  
He listened for a moment, registering a female voice then almost laughing when he realizes it's someone reading Pride and Prejudice. The situation nicely quashes the absurdity.  
  
Because Clint didn't do this.  
  
As he shook off the drugs, and yes he was drugged, he registered he was lying down with his arms tied to be folded behind his back. He shifted with effort, rising to his knees and sitting on his heels to take further stock. Still blind and deaf to his surroundings. Clearly someone meant for him to wake up and simply slide into subspace. He's usually easy for subspace, dipping in and out of it with ease while working, which was a bad habit but felt like a reward because Phil served by doing his job.  
  
This, though, was clearly part of someone else's plan. He shut his eyes as he thought back. They'd been upstate, walking down the base there for the second time. He'd gone back out to one of their vehicles, accompanied by one of the hot soldiers, to get the heavy duty bug finder Tony had lent them.  
  
His memory ended there. Presumably he'd been drugged or iced. Hopefully the hot soldier was alright.  
  
Clint was never, ever going to let him out of his sight now. He huffed in irritation and tipped his head, scraping the headset against his shoulder. It slipped off, he repeated the gesture on the other side, and the headset fell away. Still blind and bound, but now he could hear ventilation running, the hum of fluorescent lights, and someone else breathing. He oriented on the sound automatically, shifting so he's on one knee, and then getting the other foot under him and standing.  
  
He heard the other person move, breathing shifting and cloth moving, and then someone's walking a few steps towards him. So he takes a few steps back, careful and light. Still blind and without hands means he's vulnerable as hell, but he's not going to passively wait to be hit either.  
  
"Don't be petulant." A man's voice, heavily accented and immediately familiar. "This was not my plan, Acting Director Coulson, though I am very impressed with your strength. Stay still."  
  
Phil did against his better judgement, managing not to wince when what felt like a metal gauntlet cupped his cheek, then the blindfold was being removed. The gauntlet was a good hint so he's not surprised when he opens his eyes slowly and blinks against the light before focusing. "Doctor Von Doom. If this was not your plan, then how, exactly, am I your guest?"  
  
He's not even in a cell, for god's sake. They're standing in one of the most anonymous meeting rooms he's ever seen. They could be anywhere in corporate America and at any of a long list of high dollar business-oriented hotels.  
  
"I stepped on some insects that got the best of you." Von Doom stepped behind Phil, undoing the arm restraints. "I had my own designs of course, but I have no love for HYDRA."  
  
He blinked. "HYDRA took me, and then you took me from them?"  
  
"That is what I just said." He tossed the arm restraints aside. "They already had you in this ridiculous setup when my forces arrived on scene. I elected to leave you in it in case you were combative upon waking. You came out of it with grace, so I see no reason why we can't talk like men."  
  
"Very gracious of you and a courtesy I will remember." Phil said gravely. "But I do have to wonder why you took me instead of returning me to my own. It would have improved your reputation with us."  
  
"Or I might have been shot at." Doom's mask made expressions difficult to read but Phil had the unshakeable impression of a lifted eyebrow.  
  
"True, but Doombots on SHIELD property generally don't come bearing gift baskets." He shrugged. "If you would allow me to make a phone call to assure my people I am alright, I would be grateful."  
  
Doom considered him silently. "We'll talk first, then you may call."  
  
"You could have called and set up a meeting, you know."  
  
He half laughed and made a grand gesture. "Where would the fun be in that?"  
  
Phil jerked back slightly, something clicking in his head. "Are you a switch, Von Doom?" Incredibly risky to ask, of course, and a bit rude all told, but he doubted it would make his situation worse.  
  
"Ah. Yes, I am. Typically I stay on the dom side, as it is more convenient, but that is a topic for another time. I wanted to speak to you of HYDRA."  
  
"They're a problem." Phil said after a beat. "At the top of my list in problems really. Are they causing you trouble?"  
  
"So easily Americans forget that HYDRA had its origins with Nazis and therefore, Europe. Latveria was devastated during the war, which we wanted no part in, but my nation is small, and various armies simply rolled over us." Doom paced the room, body language angry and defiant. "My nation is prosperous now, so how do you think I reacted when I found HYDRA skulking about in old tunnels at my borders?"  
  
"I imagine you ruined their day."  
  
Doom looked at him, somehow grinning in spite of the mask. "Indeed I did. This is your problem Coulson, your infestation. I want them out of my country."  
  
He put up his hands. "You don't like SHIELD in your borders and never have, Von Doom, and our forces are a fraction what they used to be. I have no desire to begin further quarrels by operating on your lands."  
  
Doom was silent for a moment. "You are more respectful than your predecessor."  
  
"I can risk none of my forces on this venture." Phil replied frankly. "But, if you will give us intelligence and permission, I imagine the Avengers will gladly come to destroy any HYDRA forces near you." When Doom just stared at him he sighed. "I'd rather not add you to my problems list. If we can work together, even just to shut down a common enemy, I would prefer it."  
  
"My people do not need another threat of genocide."  
  
"No one does. The majority of the people I have now came to me for protection."  
  
"You fancy yourself a protector."  
  
"We are SHIELD. We are supposed to protect people. Even people who are different. The ongoing push against mutants, inhumans, and others hurts us all."  
  
Doom's fingers tapped the table.  
  
"I have the distinct impression you're using HYDRA as an excuse to speak to me." Phil said after weighing the discussion so far up in his head. "You seem to imply you destroyed the threat, then test to see if I'd violate the sovereignty of your nation."  
  
"What are you implying, Coulson?"  
  
"I think you're testing me. And combined with how I woke up, I think you're considering if I'm worthy of courting." It's one hell of a stretch, and he knows it. But he's a sub with dom knowledge and habit, and that might work well for a switch. He's neither young nor beautiful, but he's experienced and in something of a position of power. It's really a bit arrogant on his part and he's half expecting to be rebuked.  
  
But Doom just tipped his head slightly to one side.  
  
"Or am I too clever?" Phil asked after a beat. "At the very least I come with a lot of baggage, don't I? And it'd be such trouble, in so many ways. SHIELD is just so damn American; it is a flaw and a brash charm. Would the trouble be worth it?"  
  
"You presume much." Doom's voice was unreadable.  
  
"You haven't given me indication I'm wrong."  
  
"Hm." Doom was motionless for several moments then straightened, reaching into a pocket and setting Phil's cell phone on the table, sliding it over to him. "Call your friends."  
  
Phil picked up the phone and did, watching Doom let himself out of the room. By the time he was done calming down Skye, then Clint, and agreeing to let Jarvis find his phone, Doom was nowhere to be found.  
  
It turned out he was in an otherwise empty corporate retreat. He did find a receptionist, who was very pleasant and got him coffee while he waited, asking if his meeting had gone well. He had to admit he wasn't certain and sat on a white sofa in reception with the coffee, staring at a clock and realizing he'd lost less than two hours total.  
  
The parking lot of the retreat only had a few cars, so the quinjet landing wasn't a problem. Clint had apparently seen Phil standing waiting for them because he managed not to run, just walked over and stared at him a moment before yanking him into a hug. "You scared the shit out of me, sir."  
  
"This was somewhat of a surprise trip for me as well." He admitted with a grunt. "Is everyone okay?"  
  
"Yeah, now that we know you are. Come on."  
  
"Nice place." Skye said, waiting at the quinjet with two hot soldiers, who saluted him. "What the hell were you doing here AC?"  
  
"Having a very strange meeting with Victor Von Doom."  
  
"What?!" Clint squawked.  
  
"Doom is here?" Skye asked at the same time.  
  
"Was. He was here. I'll explain after you explain what happened at the base."

* * *

  
  
It turned out the HYDRA group that had come to get him had been a small strike team, meaning to grab him and ghost. Finding him outside with only one guard had seemed an opportune time. They had indeed iced him, and the hot soldier, but the hot soldier had burned through it in seconds and raised the alert, trying to keep Phil safe.  
  
The soldier, young looking and orange flushed like all of them, had actually knelt at Phil's feet until he'd pulled him back up and given a stern order to stop that. Enhanced or not, one versus eight were shit odds, especially when the HYDRA group had put weapons on Phil and issued an ultimatum. The soldier had backed off, they'd pulled Phil into a vehicle, and the soldier had watched them drive less than a hundred feet before a doombot had attacked the vehicle.  
  
The others at the base had arrived to watch a Doom versus HYDRA brawl. HYDRA had not come armored for Doom's forces and had brutally lost. Then the bots had stopped, saluted the SHIELD members, and left.  
  
But Phil wasn't in the vehicle any longer.  
  
In the end he'd been off the map less than two hours, and his commentary about Doom maybe wanting to court him had drawn a variety of reactions from the Avengers, and a simple "uh, no" from Clint.  
  
"I didn't say I was interested." Phil assured him, sitting on a cushion on the floor of the rumpus room, Tony, Bruce and Steve piled around him. "But if that was how he was leaning, it's actually a very interesting strategy for him to take."  
  
"How do you figure?" Tony asked. "SHIELD and Doom have been at odds forever, why change that?"  
  
"Think about it. He's ruler of a small European nation. Not only does he have to deal with the HYDRA threat, but superhuman numbers are increasing." Phil was talking as he doodled on a legal pad, circles and lines connecting and weaving, letting his hand draw without real conscious thought. "Aliens are a threat as well. SHIELD as an organization at least understands the threats and we don't want genocide. We're also semi-disgraced. I know things. I doubt he's so arrogant as to think he can simply take the entire Agency overseas because we are American, and therefore loudly proud and patriotic, but we're hunted and in danger even here. He might be considering the concept of offering us safety in exchange for protection and assistance. All guesswork of course, he gave me next to nothing."  
  
"Not much point in wondering then. When he decides I have no doubt we will know." Natasha pointed out.  
  
"Besides, we have other problems." Tony said.  
  
"Yes, on that note, is the upstate base securable?"  
  
Tony leaned and grabbed the legal pad lightning fast, looking at it then at Phil. "I meant this. What is this, Phil? And don't insult us all by saying it's nothing."  
  
He sat frozen, watching Tony pass it around, then sagged. "I don't know."  


* * *

  
  
After that he couldn't do anything but admit to the ongoing problem and try to ignore how everyone was staring at him. The endless stack of paperwork, all lines and circles but all different. It was, quite clearly, a compulsion and he admitted that it wasn't entirely in his control.  
  
"Someone is trying to tell me something. It means something. I'm just not sure what." Phil admitted, standing staring at the floor. Tony had had him lay out the stack of papers to connect them all. It's patchy. There are holes and sheets overlapping.  
  
"I can tell you part of the problem. I think you're working in two dimensions when you need three and it's warping your perception of it. There's depth to it, right? Stuff behind stuff." Tony replied. He'd showed zero judgement; if anything he seemed intrigued by the mystery.  
  
"It's the serum, right?" Skye asked after a beat.  
  
"Yes. I believe it is. Garrett, and now, me." Phil admitted. "And others, before us."  
  
"Except me."  
  
He looked at her. "Don't make me say why." She was clearly disturbed by that and he looked back to the papers. "You are right, Stark. It has depth."  
  
"Then draw it in my holograph software. That'll let you draw in three dimensions and zoom in and out to your heart's content."  
  
He blinked. "... Thank you." It's sincere.  
  
"JARVIS, work on scanning all of this in will you?" Tony patted Phil's shoulder. "We'll figure it out. Looks like an electrical diagram, a bit."  
  
"Or a map." Bruce pointed out. "Though not one written how humans tend to."  
  
Phil crouched and stared at it, eyes half closing, leaning on Clint's leg when Clint moved to stand by him.  
  
"What's it like?"  
  
"Like a whisper I can barely hear or a half remembered dream. A portent." Phil replied after a beat, shivering when Clint stroked his hair.  
  
"Remember when I said I need you to tell me stuff?"  
  
"Yes. I'm sorry. This is... I was afraid I'm crazy. I still am."  
  
"This is the serum that saved you, right?" Tony questioned. "Before Fury butchered your brain."  
  
"Your tact is, as always, amazing." Phil huffed. "Yes. It's got some alien origin. Not sure what race. They're blue."  
  
"Thor will be back eventually, we'll ask him."  
  
"Blue. I hate to use biology here as a baseline but that might mean copper based blood. Assuming they're a species that relies on oxygen exchange at all of course." Bruce said.  
  
Tony snapped his fingers and pointed at Bruce. "Horseshoe crabs! Blue blood, copper based." Bruce smiled a bit and nodded. "Shit, Agent, no wonder you're fucked up."  
  
He rubbed his face, sinking to his knees and leaning harder on Clint, wondering if he speaking about this was a mistake.  


* * *

  
  
Two days later he no longer had an argument.  
  
Phil had let Skye in charge of the upstate base and let May arrange any related logistics. The ravers had already ridden upstate and were now working on the grounds, their formidable bulk making a statement. Emmett had gone with them as well, so all of the large LMDs finally had some space to roughhouse and move.  
  
Phil had put it all out of his head. Just moved his living room furniture, put on his favorite swing music, made coffee, and drawn. The paper version had been saved as a rough draft and he started over, working out a series of gestures with Jarvis and drawing with his fingertips. Circles and lines now floating in 3D space, and he could turn it, walk through it, move it around and refine it.  
  
It was difficult to explain the headspace, halfway between meditation and subspace as something from far away and a long time ago tried to tell him something. Disturbing, really. A serum, stolen from the body of an alien, was trying to impart knowledge to his damaged mind.  
  
And he wasn't alone. He knew of the project he'd worked on. TAHITI. Every single subject of the serum had eventually dissolved to this, their entire being consumed by circles and lines and wanting to know why.  
  
Two days, and he's left standing in his living room bathed in pale blue holographs, feeling relief tickle through him because he knows.  
  
"Director Coulson. You have not slept in nearly forty-eight hours." JARVIS said quietly. "Agent Barton wants access to your suite."  
  
"Let him in." Phil decided, picking up a bottle of water and drinking it down, staring at the design still as Clint walked in slowly.  
  
"You're scaring me." Clint said finally, standing next to him, brows drawn together.  
  
"It's done. Out of my head." Phil gave him a blissful, exhausted smile. "It's a city."  
  
Clint caught him as he passed out.


End file.
